Godwin, Earl of Wessex
historyGodwin of Wessex (; d. 15 April 1053), also known as Goodwin, was one of the most powerful lords in England under the Danish king Canute the Great and his successors. Canute made him the first Earl of Wessex. Godwin was the father of King Harold Godwinson and Edith of Wessex, wife of King Edward the Confessor.
Rise: support of Edmund, then Canute
Godwin's father was possibly Wulfnoth Cild who was a thegn of Sussex, although later documents describe his father as a churl. Wulfnoth led a section of the royal fleet into piracy and as a consequence had his lands forfeited, and was exiled. In his day, Earl Godwin was seen as very much of a new man, who had been "made" by two advantageous marriages to Danish noblewomen.
Godwin was a major supporter of Edmund Ironside, the son of King Ethelred the Unready. While Edmund was in rebellion against his father, Canute and his army invaded England. Edmund was killed, along with many of his supporters, but Godwin survived and pledged his loyalty to Canute. He befriended Canute's brother-in-law, Earl Ulf, and became one of Canute's advisers, accompanying him to Denmark to suppress a rebellion there. By 1018 he was an earl, becoming Earl of Wessex in about 1019.
Height of power: support of Harold
On 12 November 1035, Canute died. His kingdoms were divided among three rival rulers. Harold Harefoot, Canute's illegitimate son with Aelgifu of Northampton, seized the throne of England. Harthacanute, Canute's legitimate son with Emma of Normandy, reigned in Denmark. Norway rebelled under Magnus the Noble. In 1035, the throne of England was reportedly claimed by Alfred Aetheling, younger son of Emma of Normandy and Ethelred the Unready, and half-brother of Harthacanute. Godwin is reported to have either captured Alfred himself or to have deceived him by pretending to be his ally and then surrendering him to the forces of Harold Harefoot. Either way Alfred was blinded and soon died at Ely.
In 1040, Harold Harefoot died and Godwin supported the accession of his half-brother Harthacanute to the throne of England. When Harthacanute himself died in 1042 Godwin finally supported the claim of his half-brother Edward the Confessor to the throne. Edward was another son of Emma and Ethelred, having spent most of the previous thirty years in Normandy. His reign restored the native royal house of Wessex to the throne of England.
Progeny
Godwin married a woman named Gytha who some, speculating that she was a daughter of Thorgil has called Gytha Thorkelsdóttir. If she was a daughter of Thorgil than she may also have been the granddaughter of the legendary Viking Styrbjörn Starke and great-granddaughter to Harold Bluetooth, king of Denmark and thus also ancestor to King Canute. Whomever she was, the marriage resulted in the birth of many children:
- Sweyn Godwinson, Earl of Herefordshire (c. 1023-1052). At some point he declared himself an illegitimate son of Canute the Great but this is considered to be a false claim.
- Harold II of England (c. 1022-14 October 1066)
- Tostig Godwinson, Earl of Northumbria (c. 1026-25 September 1066)
- Edith of Wessex, (c. 1030-19 December 1075), queen consort of Edward the Confessor
- Gyrth Godwinson (c. 1030-14 October 1066)
- Gunhilda of Wessex, a nun (c. 1035-1080)
- Ælfgifu of Wessex (c. 1035)
- Leofwine Godwinson, Earl of Kent (c. 1035-14 October 1066)
- Wulfnoth Godwinson (c. 1040)
- Marigard of Wessex (6 February 1033 – 6 August 1083)
- House of Wessex family tree
- Godwin family tree
- Canute's family tree
In popular culture
Godwin has been portrayed by Torin Thatcher in the film Lady Godiva of Coventry (1955) and by Bill Wallis in an episode of the British educational TV series Historyonics entitled "1066" (2004).
- Mason, Emma. The House of Godwine: The History of Dynasty. Hambledon Press, 2003.
- Stenton, F.M. Anglo-Saxon England (Oxford History of England), 2001.
- Thorne, J.O. and Collocott, T.C. Chambers Biographical Dictionary, Revised Edition. (Edinburgh: Chambers, 1984) ISBN 0-550-16010-8
- Walker, Ian. Harold: The Last Anglo-Saxon King, 1997.
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- »Discussion on soc.genealogy medieval of Godwin's genealogy and possible descent from Alfred the Great's brother.
- »Godwin, earl of Wessex A short biography with suggestions for further reading.
- Regia Anglorum »Kingmakers - the story of the House of Godwin